Like all of the other courses to this dinner, this soup went through lots of changes too. Not so much the velouté itself, but its accompaniments. But at the very end, once I plated this, I was in love with it. It’s by far one of the best photos I have ever taken of my own creations. And can you believe this is from an iPhone? Not a professional camera?! Astonishing!

Here is Butternut Squash Velouté with Black Trumpets, Chanterelles, Toasted Pepitas, and Chives. There is also white truffle oil flavoring in the soup because I sous vide the butternut squash with some of that oil.

Remember my post, Hand-Cut Pappardelle with Almond Cream & White Truffle, when I took the picture, I forgot to put pumpernickel soil on it… which is why I created this dish because I had a lot of almond cream leftover from the pappardelle — and I didn’t want to hand-cut pappardelle again.

I like to challenge myself with vegetarian and vegan dishes. More of the latter because it’s more restrictive. I’m quite proud of this dish. Here, we have Hand-Cut Pappardelle pasta in an Almond Cream with Sugar Snap Peas, Pumpernickel Soil & White Truffle Oil.

I cut the pasta sheets by hand because there isn’t a pappardelle noodle-cutter – or at least I haven’t one yet. The noodle-cutter that I have comes with a spaghetti and fettuccine setting.

There is no dairy in the almond cream. Almond cream is just puréed almonds.

I served this dish right when spring began. This is fresh Burrata cheese from Murray’s Cheeses with a Broccoli Rabe Pesto over toasted Filone sourdough, Confetti Cherry Heirloom Tomatoes, Aged Apple Vinegar, and Micro Basil.

I am not a salad person. I have never ordered a salad in a restaurant. I didn’t understand why people loved salads – a bunch of raw vegetables (usually ones with zero or lacking of nutritional values) plopped on a plate, with an unhealthy dose of fatty dressing. Obviously, what I’m talking about are the salads from the 90s.

One of my chef instructors told me that to judge a restaurant or chef, one must order a seafood dish and/or a salad.

So, week by week, I have been creating new interesting salads (that I would eat) for the tasting menu, usually for the first or second course.

This one is a Roasted Red Beet Salad with Bayley Hazen Blue Cheese, Hazelnuts, Pea Tendrils and Dragon Mizuna Greens dressed in a Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette.

Remember that red beet and endive salad from Valentine’s Day? Well, it was so well received that I put it as the “salad” on the a la carte menu, with a few minor changes. It stayed on the a la carte menu for three months. Now, it’s May 31, and a new salad just replaced it… fitting with the current weather and season!